Solan Times covered the media coverage of New Salaam Clinic on 5 Dec 2019. Salaam Clinic recently had a grand opening of its free clinic in the Hough neighborhood. Dr. Syed P. Ashraf and Dr. Simee Malik, who are the heart and helm of the Salaam Clinic, both are Solon residents and care about their local neighborhood quite profoundly. The New Salaam Clinic has three exam rooms that are dedicated to the uninsured and underinsured community members. Dr. Syed P. Ashraf, Dr. Simee Malik, Dr. Marina Magrey, and eight other volunteering physicians, nurses, and support staff split their time manning the clinic.
Dr. Simee Malik, a pediatrician with Lake Health, said that the idea of free medical checkups for deserving members of her community was bugging her for the past 2 years. Cleveland Clinic’s main campus, other hospitals, and medical centers are nearby the Salaam Clinic, but still, people were not getting access to health care.
Dr. Syed P. Ashraf, an internal medicine specialist with Atrium Group, said that the word “Salaam” is an Arabic word which means “Peace”. Salaam Clinic is part of Salaam Cleveland, which is a social work organization and came into being after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001. Local doctors vowed to provide free basic health care screening and primary care facilities because while working at well-sought hospitals and clinics, they saw that there is a gap in the system, where uninsured and underinsured people are neglected from basic medical facilities due to financial reasons.
In Solon and its suburbs, most community members are not insured or are underinsured. These people are equally valuable members of our community and they spend their whole lives without getting proper medical services. Salaam Clinic gives proper care to people who aren’t aware of which direction to take in certain medical conditions. The primary focus of Salaam Clinic is to get these people into the healthcare system. This means beginning a health chart, performing various medical screenings, and other routine exams.
Dr. Syed P. Ashraf said that they are continuously looking forward to collaborating with pharmacies, hospitals, and medical centers. They are looking for all types of collaborations, as Salaam Clinic is a primary health services clinic and cannot take mammograms and other lab tests, so they need support from hospitals as well as from the local council.
Dr. Syed P. Ashraf has long term goals for Salaam Clinic. He foresees a more holistic approach to medical services in the future. Salaam Clinic aims to offer free basic prescription medicines and medical or health education for deserving people as well.
